Teacher efficacy, a key psychological factor affecting EFL instructors' performance, is vital for quality education. In China, the COVID-19 pandemic shifted most EFL teaching online, prompting a need to compare teachers' efficacy in traditional and online settings. Previous studies have indicated that teaching experience greatly influences teacher efficacy, with notable differences between novice and experienced teachers. This study surveyed 56 novice and 51 experienced teachers using independent t-tests to assess online teaching efficacy. Additionally, interviews with five novice and five experienced teachers provided insights into these differences. Results revealed high overall efficacy in online teaching for both groups, with experienced teachers showing significantly higher efficacy across four sub-dimensions of efficacy.
Top1. Introduction
The widespread use of English in China has contributed to the rapid development of English language education, attracting many novice EFL teachers each year (Liu et al., 2021; Pu, 2020). Novice EFL teachers are more likely to encounter various issues in teaching due to various factors (Li et al., 2021). Many researchers have found that this phenomenon is related to the teachers’ personal skills and psychological state (Ashton, 1984; Choi & Lee, 2016; Lesha, 2017). As a crucial component of teachers’ psychology, a growing body of research has demonstrated that teachers’ teaching efficacy significantly determines their behaviour (Han et al., 2021; Ma et al., 2021) and teaching effectiveness (Mercer & Kostoulas, 2018; Pan & Gan, 2020; Pu, 2020). The better the teaching effect, the greater the teacher’s efficacy. Successful teaching experience enhances teachers’ teaching efficacy, creating a virtuous circle (Liu et al., 2021; Wang, 2021). Therefore, improving the teachers’ sense of teaching efficacy is crucial for the overall quality of English language teaching. Studies have also found that experienced teachers significantly outperform novice teachers in terms of teaching efficacy (Bair & Bair, 2011; Liaw et al., 2007; Hofer et al., 2021).
Previous research on teachers’ teaching efficacy was predominantly conducted within the context of traditional onsite teaching modes. However, with the advancement of web technologies, online courses and distance learning have gradually gained prominence in the public’s view (Badia et al., 2017; Ramadani & Xhaferi, 2020). This has provided new ways of delivering educational resources and changed the traditional format of teaching and learning. Online teaching reduces psychological barriers between teachers and students and expands communication opportunities (Robinia & Anderson, 2010; Stickney et al., 2019). However, online teaching also poses new demands and challenges for teachers. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic further contributed to the growth of online education, with significant impacts on teaching methods and teacher psychology. In particular, the teaching methods (Albrahim, 2020; Sofi-Karim et al., 2022) and characteristics (Fuchs et al., 2021; Han et al., 2021) of online and traditional education are markedly different, presenting unique challenges for teachers. It also affects the psychology of teachers, as the teaching efficacy of novice and experienced teachers changes with the shift in teaching mode. It has become a contentious issue whether differences in teaching efficacy still exist between novice and experienced teachers and the nature of their interactions under the new teaching mode.
This study aims to explore the current situation of online English teaching and the differences between how novice and experienced teachers perceive self-efficacy through a mixed method. At the theoretical level, this study is committed to enriching the theory of teacher research on online teaching and providing theoretical foundations and practical suggestions for EFL teacher development research. At the practical level, the results of the study will provide school management with effective strategies to enhance the teaching efficacy of EFL teachers (especially novice teachers) in online teaching, thus improving the pedagogical quality of online English instruction.